Professor and students prototype machine to unravel textiles for re-use rather than cutting them
University of Minnesota Duluth associate professor Abbie Clarke-Sather, Ph.D., envisions a world where textile recycling is commonplace. Where thrift stores, recycling facilities and clothing brands can manage their own textile waste, turning it back into fibers that can be reused instead of going to landfills by the literal millions of tons. She and her team have been developing the Fiber Shredder for the past six years. It’s a little bit of a misnomer, as the machine pulls apart textiles rather than cutting them, leaving the fibers longer and more usable for re-spinning. It does the job in about 90 seconds.
photo: Hira Durrani (left), who is working toward her master’s in applied material science at the University of Minnesota Duluth, has developed nonwovens from recycled cotton. Paulo Alves graduated with a master’s in mechanical engineering and is working with associate professor Abbie Clarke-Sather, Ph.D., at Waypoint Forward LLC to commercialize the machine.
A University of Minnesota Duluth team has been developing the Fiber Shredder machine that unravels textiles for fiber and textile recycling.
